Helen is a cortically blind monkey. And yet, she retains remarkable visual abilities such as navigating through obstacles and grabbing food placed in front of her. A number of hypotheses have been put forward for how the brain of blindsight individuals retain such survival critical behaviours. Which of the following is NOT one of such hypotheses?

Question

BlackTom AI · Accepted Answer

Let’s break down what each option claims about the neural routes that could support blindsight-like abilities.
Option 1: 'Visual information flows via a direct pathway from the LGN to MT that bypasses V1.' This suggests a direct thalamocortical route from the lateral geniculate nucleus to area MT (V5) without involving V1. While there is evidence for alternative pathways that bypass V1, a direct LGN-to-MT route is not a widely supported or well-established hypothesis in blindsight literature. The LGN projects mainly to V1, with limited documented direct LGN-to-MT routes; therefore, this option is less accepted as a mechanism for blindsight.
Option 2: 'Visual information flows via a direct pathway from the pulvinar to MT that bypasses V1.' This pathway—pulvinar to MT bypassing V1—has been proposed in several studies as part of subcortical routes enabling rapid, coarse visual processing for action-guiding behavior in blindsight. It is a commonly discussed hypothesis and aligns with how blindsight phenomena are sometimes explained, making this a plausible option.
Option 3: 'Residual visual information is enabled by small intact areas in V1.' The idea that small islands of spared or less-damaged V1 tissue can retain some visual processing capability is a classic and well-supported explanation for blindsight. Such residual function in V1 is frequently cited as a contributor to preserved vision despite cortical damage, so this is a valid hypothesis.
Option 4: 'Visual information flows via a direct pathway from the pulvinar to the insula that bypasses V1.' The insula is not typically implicated as a primary destination for visual information driving sighted-like responses in blindsight. While the insula has roles in salience and integration, a direct pulvinar-to-insula pathway as a mechanism for visually guided behavior is not a standard or widely proposed hypothesis in blindsight research, making this option less plausible.
In summary, options 2 and 3 describe plausible, discussed mechanisms in blindsight research, and option 4 describes a route that is not commonly proposed as a mechanism for residual visually guided behavior. Option 1 describes an LGN-to-MT bypass route, which is not a well-supported or commonly proposed pathway in this context.
Given these evaluations, the statement that is NOT one of the commonly proposed hypotheses is the one that describes a direct LGN-to-MT bypassing V1 route (Option 1).

PSYC30018_2025_SM1 Week 8 Practice Quiz

查看解析

登录即可查看完整答案

类似问题

Information from the right visual field projects onto the ____ side of the retina in both eyes.

Which of the following options form an incorrect statement: “The Pulvinar pathway to MT…

Which of the following options form an incorrect statement: “The LGN pathway in blindsight…

Which of the following statements about retinal signals from the right visual field is CORRECT?

The two optic nerves from each eye meet at the point called the

Which of the following accurately describes the parvocellular visual pathway?

The optic chiasm is an example of [ Select ] synaptic relays parallel processing decussation hierarchical processing where two tracts from Cranial Nerve [ Select ] X cross over IX diverge II relay action potentials I converge X converge II cross over .

At the optic chiasm,

更多留学生实用工具

考试浏览器助手

风格化写作助手

论文查重助手

文献引用助手

课堂转译助手

课堂笔记助手

Quiz搜索助手

学校历年真题

智能刷题助手

智能匹配练习

希望你的学习变得更简单